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MANSFIELD – For the first 12 minutes of the game, Triway was more than holding its own against #1-ranked Kenton.
That’s when the floodgates opened.
Three second quarter Triway turnovers led to three Kenton touchdowns, turning what was a close game into a rout and an eventual 46-6 victory for the Wildcats at Mansfield’s Arlin Field.
Triway committed four turnovers total in the first half, three of which occurred inside Kenton’s 10-yard line.
Triway took the opening kickoff and moved methodically down the field, putting together a 13-play drive.
However, on 1st and 10 from the Kenton 15, Jordon Miller took a jet sweep around left end and just before he got to the sideline, coughed up the football, which was recovered by Noah Furbush. Kenton needed just three plays and 25 seconds to cover the 93 yards. Sherman connected on a slip screen with Colyn Blackford, who went 61 yards for the touchdown to give Kenton a 6-0 lead.
The teams then traded possessions and Triway found itself in business after Kenton turned the ball over on downs at its own 47. The Titans covered the distance in six plays, capped by a 1-yard touchdown pass from Parker Carmichael to Troy Haven. The connection knotted the game at 6-all with 1:07 remaining in the first quarter.
The teams then each committed two turnovers, but it was the second one by Triway that caused the game to go south in a hurry. Kenton recovered a fumble at its own 23. A short pass to Justin Sawmiller, an incompletion, and a Sherman quarterback draw left the Wildcats with a 4th and 2 at their own 31. Showing an aversion to the punt, Kenton decided to go for it and the gamble paid off.
The Wildcats went to the running game. Matt Bahr beat the second level of the Triway defense and raced 69 yards to the end zone. He added the two-point conversion and Kenton had a 14-6 lead, one that it would not relinquish, at the 6:20 mark of the second quarter.
Another Triway drive was thwarted deep inside Kenton territory when Matt Bahr intercepted a Parker Carmichael pass at the 4-yard line. The Cats needed just three plays and 45 seconds to cover the 96 yards. A 62-yard Grant Sherman to Justin Sawmiller connection bumped Kenton’s lead to 22-6 at the 4:03 mark.
Kenton rounded out its onslaught with only 46 seconds left until halftime when Sherman connected with Kollin Stollar from 28 yards out to make the score 30-6.
Kenton’s four first half scoring drives: three plays, 93 yards, 25 seconds; four plays, 77 yards, 61 seconds; three plays, 96 yards, 45 seconds; three plays, 62 yards, 33 seconds.
Kenton also wasted no time scoring in the second half. The Wildcats scored two touchdowns in the opening two minutes of the third quarter. Sherman’s second touchdown pass to Justin Sawmiller just 34 seconds in made the score 38-6. They finished out the scoring on a 3-yard touchdown pass from Sherman to Colyn Blackford.
Triway ends its season with a 9-3 record. Kenton, now 12-0, advances to next week regional final where it will play 12-0 Bryan. The Golden Bears throttled River Valley 49-19.
Score by Quarters
Kenton -- 6 24 16 0 -- 46
Triway -- 6 0 0 0 -- 6
First Quarter
K -- Blackford 61 pass from Sherman (pass failed), 6:17
T -- Haven 1 pass from Parker Carmichael (kick failed), 1:07
Second Quarter
K - Bahr 69 run (Bahr run), 6:20
K - Sawmiller 62 pass from Sherman (Stollar pass from Sherman), 4:03
K - Stollar 28 pass from Sherman (Blackford pass from Sherman), 0:46
Third Quarter
K - Sawmiller 6 pass from Sherman (Blackford pass from Sherman), 11:26
K - Blackford 3 pass from Sherman (Blackford pass from Sherman), 10:11
K
T
First Downs
16
19
Rushes - yards
17-71
21-22
Team Passing
20-42-434-3
44-66-269-4
Penalties
9-105
12-80
Rushing: Kenton: Bahr 1-68; Triway: Strock 3-13.
Receiving: Kenton: Blackford 3-75, Sawmiller 7-143, Stollar 7-144, Triway: Duncan 6-36, Haven 16-58, Kopp 8-69, J Miller 11-96.
Passing: Kenton: Hites 1-5-13, Sherman 20-37-421, Triway: Carmichael 44-66-269.
All team and individual statistics are courtesy of Andrew Marcum.
